around the fusion reactor, a Robin’s with dual particle accelerators. We had the same kind on the farm. A very reliable, stable power supply.
“Five hundred megawatts. Four hundred million of those watts are used to generate the hole in space time at the bow of the ship. We’ll start studying propulsion after we’re done here,” Jack said.
He must have started to feel better. He lectured as if he were a professor in college. He paced across the room.
“These are the safeties,” he said, pointing at a control panel on the side of the room. “Of course it’s important to keep the fusion reaction in the center of the heat exchanger. If the reaction moves more than a few millimeters, the reactor will be destroyed.” He paused and looked at the safeties. “It’s a long walk home. We have seven redundant circuits. Any of them are capable of protecting the reactor core if necessary.” He paused and seemed to gather his thoughts. “Even here, outside the containment and beyond the cooling jacket, the magnetic fields are huge.” He set a large wrench on the floor and it floated at a forty-five degree angle. “When welding, the field can pull the molten metal away from the joint, leaving weak welds. So be careful working here.”
Jack was a good teacher. He went on to show me the pellet injectors and the trim field generators.
* * * *
Jack and Sandra must have some kind of competition going on to see who would kill me, I thought. Jack had just assigned me an article to read, and Sandra had become a monster, working me harder at each practice. I thought it was just for the competition, but something else bothered her. We always finished our practices with breathing exercises.
It was Thursday, and we were just finishing up. I looked over at her, and said, “Let’s go get a beer after practice.”
She shot me a mean look. “What? Is Kathy busy tonight?”
I shrugged. “I don’t know. I haven’t spoken to her in three weeks.”
“You broke up with her.”
“We were never together.”
She paused and looked at me. “One beer. The tournament is in two days.”
“Sunday, here at ten,” I said, getting up. I held out my hand.
“I need to change.”
“I’ll wait.”
Her nose wrinkled. “Take a shower while you wait. See you at G-four.”
After taking a fast shower, I pulled on clean shorts and an almost fresh t-shirt. I raked my shoulder-length hair with a brush, then tied it back into a tail. Once I arrived at G-four, I took a chair where I could see the door. At first, I didn’t recognize her with her hair falling to her shoulders in black curls. She wore tight pants that went just past her knees and a sleeveless t-shirt. My mouth went dry as she approached my table and smiled at my ice water.
I tried to be cool, taking a sip of my water as she slipped into a chair across from me, but I saw every move she made. She reached across and stole my drink. She took a sip and smiled, daring me to object.
“Wow, I didn’t realize you were so pretty.”
She blushed. “Thanks. Are you hungry?”
I nodded. She stood and held out her hand. I smiled and took it, enjoying the warmth of her touch. We headed to the cafeteria, and as we went through the line, she kept taking rolls and cookies off my tray and replacing them with salads.
Dinner was quiet. We were both tired. I only sipped my beer. She didn’t touch hers. “You’re quiet,” she said.
“Yeah, not much to say. My social life has been lacking. Just a few hours with you at practice and study sometimes. I wonder if I can speak.” I looked at her. “You’re a good friend. Thanks.”
She frowned, then smiled. “Friends. I enjoy your company.”
We sat in silence as I finished my beer. After we left, I took her hand and walked with her. “Are you walking me home?”
“I don’t know. Maybe.”
She laughed. “Okay, here we are,” she said. She stopped and looked at me. “Friends.” She reached up and kissed my cheek. On the way to
“Five hundred megawatts. Four hundred million of those watts are used to generate the hole in space time at the bow of the ship. We’ll start studying propulsion after we’re done here,” Jack said.
He must have started to feel better. He lectured as if he were a professor in college. He paced across the room.
“These are the safeties,” he said, pointing at a control panel on the side of the room. “Of course it’s important to keep the fusion reaction in the center of the heat exchanger. If the reaction moves more than a few millimeters, the reactor will be destroyed.” He paused and looked at the safeties. “It’s a long walk home. We have seven redundant circuits. Any of them are capable of protecting the reactor core if necessary.” He paused and seemed to gather his thoughts. “Even here, outside the containment and beyond the cooling jacket, the magnetic fields are huge.” He set a large wrench on the floor and it floated at a forty-five degree angle. “When welding, the field can pull the molten metal away from the joint, leaving weak welds. So be careful working here.”
Jack was a good teacher. He went on to show me the pellet injectors and the trim field generators.
* * * *
Jack and Sandra must have some kind of competition going on to see who would kill me, I thought. Jack had just assigned me an article to read, and Sandra had become a monster, working me harder at each practice. I thought it was just for the competition, but something else bothered her. We always finished our practices with breathing exercises.
It was Thursday, and we were just finishing up. I looked over at her, and said, “Let’s go get a beer after practice.”
She shot me a mean look. “What? Is Kathy busy tonight?”
I shrugged. “I don’t know. I haven’t spoken to her in three weeks.”
“You broke up with her.”
“We were never together.”
She paused and looked at me. “One beer. The tournament is in two days.”
“Sunday, here at ten,” I said, getting up. I held out my hand.
“I need to change.”
“I’ll wait.”
Her nose wrinkled. “Take a shower while you wait. See you at G-four.”
After taking a fast shower, I pulled on clean shorts and an almost fresh t-shirt. I raked my shoulder-length hair with a brush, then tied it back into a tail. Once I arrived at G-four, I took a chair where I could see the door. At first, I didn’t recognize her with her hair falling to her shoulders in black curls. She wore tight pants that went just past her knees and a sleeveless t-shirt. My mouth went dry as she approached my table and smiled at my ice water.
I tried to be cool, taking a sip of my water as she slipped into a chair across from me, but I saw every move she made. She reached across and stole my drink. She took a sip and smiled, daring me to object.
“Wow, I didn’t realize you were so pretty.”
She blushed. “Thanks. Are you hungry?”
I nodded. She stood and held out her hand. I smiled and took it, enjoying the warmth of her touch. We headed to the cafeteria, and as we went through the line, she kept taking rolls and cookies off my tray and replacing them with salads.
Dinner was quiet. We were both tired. I only sipped my beer. She didn’t touch hers. “You’re quiet,” she said.
“Yeah, not much to say. My social life has been lacking. Just a few hours with you at practice and study sometimes. I wonder if I can speak.” I looked at her. “You’re a good friend. Thanks.”
She frowned, then smiled. “Friends. I enjoy your company.”
We sat in silence as I finished my beer. After we left, I took her hand and walked with her. “Are you walking me home?”
“I don’t know. Maybe.”
She laughed. “Okay, here we are,” she said. She stopped and looked at me. “Friends.” She reached up and kissed my cheek. On the way to
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